Money for projects such as hangars "could likely be better used on higher-priority projects like airspace modernization," said David Castelveter of the Air Transport Association, the airline trade group.

A senior manager working on the civilian side of Benghazi's airport said he knew for certain that fighter jets were docked in working order in bunkered hangars at the airport, though he refused to say how many.

Two other hangars at the Tripoli shipyard, used for repairing electrical and mechanical equipment and parts for the Libyan fleet, were hit in the same strikes, causing significant damage and leaving behind two deep craters in the middle of the workshops.